I used to spend HOURS planning new literacy centers each week: making, laminating, cutting, sorting, labeling, differentiating. . . you know the drill!SO. MUCH. WORK!A few years ago, I started using 5 anchor centers almost every week. These literacy centers were perfect year-round because they provided students with choice while being easy to manage. All I had to do was switch one thing at each center and I was done.I still changed my centers to add a new or seasonal activity, but I always knew I had 5 centers ready-to-go so there was no pressure to change them.Anchor centers make your life so much easier in a few ways:Less planning timeLess prepping timeLess time going over center instructionsMore time with your small groups!What are the Anchor Centers?I'll go over each one, explaining what we did and including management tips. At the bottom of this post, you will find the links to all freebies and ... read more
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Chinese New Year Activities
Going to the Chinese New Year parade in New York City had been on my to-do list for years and I finally got the chance to check it off!Last year, my family and I drove to NYC for the parade and we were not disappointed (well, except for the jacked-up parking costs)!We watched from Chatham Square (about the halfway point) as dancers, band members, politicians, and activists marched down the street to celebrate this exciting holiday.It was incredible to see the lion dancing, the dancers under it coordinating their moves seamlessly.Here's another up close. The eyes have mechanisms to make them blink.People hold the dragon up with long sticks, which they move to make the dragon "dance."And, it was the year of the pig, so there were also pigs marching!Chinese New Year in the ClassroomWe loved celebrating Chinese New Year in our classroom also, so let me share a few activities with you, a freebie, and ... read more
25+ Classroom Organization Tips For the New Year
If you're anything like me, you love to start the new year very organized! It may not always last as long as I plan, but I do take some measures to refresh, improve, and organize my systems for the remainder of the year.When I started this list of classroom organization tips, I had no idea I would have so many. Talk about the mother lode of organization tips! I asked the teachers in my FaceBook group for their best tips as well and they came through with some gems! You'll see them quoted throughout.To make it a little less overwhelming and to save you time, I've organized them into categories. Make sure to grab your organization freebie before you go!ORGANIZE YOUR TASKS: PRIORITIZE!Organize your to-do list! A comprehensive to-do list in one place is overwhelming and wastes time! Use the freebie below to organize and prioritize your tasks. Edit the headings to meet your needs, print and laminate, then use post-it notes ... read more
How to Use Interactive Read-Alouds in the Classroom
Do you remember your teachers reading to you?I don't remember much about being a student in first grade, but something I do remember is the feeling I'd get when it was storytime. Mrs. Mayerhofer had a way of engaging us with stories and it seemed magical!Read-alouds are a cornerstone of instruction. We all know the importance and many benefits of reading aloud to children. Here are just a few:Deeper thinking and comprehensionVocabularyHaving a model for expressive and fluent readingEnjoyment!Although I LOVE reading to my students, I didn't always feel confident when doing an interactive read-aloud. What books should I read, skills should I cover, discussions to have, questions to ask, etc.If I didn't have a well-thought-out lesson plan for a book, I felt I wasn't being effective. The truth is, there are times you will just pick a book and read it to children just for enjoyment! That's what books are made for, ... read more
Animals in Winter- Hibernation, Migration, Camouflage, Adaptation
Does science take the back burner in your school?With the focus on literacy and math, it seems there is so little time for it!But we all know science is important!Since there is so little scheduled time for it, I want to make sure my lessons are meaningful and engaging. I make sure they are well-planned, concise and to the point, keeping the big ideas and standards in focus.My Animals in Winter unit does just that. Each lesson includes interactive activities to get your kids moving to learn about animal adaptation. It integrates all subject areas to help connect learning. Here's some of what we do!HibernationWe start with hibernation. We check our heart rate before and after doing jumping jacks and discuss how activity affects it. Kids learn that hibernating animals' heart rate drops significantly and their bodies get cold. We sing this little poem/song about hibernation and switch out the animals and ... read more
Planning a Classroom Holiday Party!
I had a holiday paint party.In my classroom. . .With kids and parents . . .And it wasn't a disaster!In fact, it was the best holiday party I've had in my classroom, ever!I mentioned it earlier this year and a few of you had lots of questions and were curious to know how it went, so I decided to blog about it because I highly recommend it!After our kindergarten holiday sing, each classroom hosted parents for a project. I decided our project would be snowman painting because kids love to paint and, well, who doesn't love a snowman? (P.S. You could also do this in January since it's snowman-themed!)At first, it seemed a little crazy, but I contacted the BEST paint party host I know (and my friend) Gety, and she loaned me her easels and told me what supplies to get. It really didn't seem hard at all and as a bonus, this would be the gift for parents, so it saved me time putting together a holiday gift! ... read more
Tips for Parent-Teacher Conferences
It's almost that time! Getting ready for parent-teacher conferences can be time-consuming or stressful, but it doesn't have to be! Here are some tips to help your conferences go smoothly.One important thing to keep in mind is to make sure to stay positive and professional at all times. It's not always easy, but it will benefit everyone!Be sure to get your freebie from my free resource library for some helpful forms!SchedulingOur district allows 2 full days and 1 evening for conferences. Some teachers like to ask parents for their preferred time and you can do this if you like. I always found this resulted in everyone asking for an evening time, even if they were able to attend a day conference. So, I instead scheduled everyone myself (in pencil) before asking. Hold on before you say this is inconsiderate! I always asked for confirmation and was flexible for parents who asked for a schedule change. Better?Send ... read more
Guided Reading Tools Every Teacher Should Have
Guided reading tools can make all the difference in the world! We all have our must-haves, which most likely include magnetic letters and dry-erase boards. But, do you have the other 2 types of tools below? Read 3 types of tools every teacher should have in their guided reading toolkit!Must-Have Guided Reading ToolsMagnetic Letter Trays with Alphabet Guide- These are great to keep your letters organized, while providing beginners a guide for putting letters in abc order, identifying letters, and other word work activities.Whisper Phones- These are great for helping kids hear themselves read, while not distracting the other kids at the guided reading table. Here's a quick tutorial on how to make your own by Make, Take, Teach! DIY Whisper Phone videoPost-it Notes- These are great for taking notes, jotting thoughts, marking discussion spots in books, covering parts of words and the picture, and more!Supply Bin- You ... read more
Growth Mindset with Rosie’s Glasses
I need to share this book with you because it just has soooo many great lessons, including teaching growth mindset! Don't you just love a good read-aloud you can use for many skills and strategies? I do!I read this book to my former students a couple of weeks ago. Here is a picture of me and some of the cuties!BOOK SUMMARYThe book is called Rosie's Glasses and it's a wordless picture book by Dave Whamond. It's about a little girl who is just having a bad day. Nothing is going right: her room is a mess, she doesn't know what to wear, it's raining, a car splashes her with dirty water, even school is boring. . . we've all had those days, right?After school, she finds a pair of glasses and when she puts them on, her world becomes colorful (the book was in black and white before this). Look at this beautiful illustration of the transformation.With her new glasses, everything seems much happier and livelier, including ... read more
How to Keep your Guided Reading Lessons Short
One question that comes up often about guided reading is. . .How do I fit all my groups in?The struggle is real!It's important to take the time you need with your students (part of teaching is loving on them!), but it's also important to stay on track, so that you're able to meet with your students as much as possible.12 Tips to Keep Your Guided Reading Lessons on TrackHere are some ways to help you keep your guided reading lessons short and sweet, giving you a chance to meet with more groups every week!Skip the Schema. Hear me out on this one because I do believe schema is important. . . if I told you we are about to read a book about Paris, what do you think of? Did the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, or baguettes and croissants come to mind? I bet they did! It's because it's human nature to automatically start making associations. Most beginning books have topics that are familiar to children, so you don't need a ... read more